Severed Locks
by pauses
Summary: On the eve of Rahzel's birthday, a chain of events is set in motion by someone she trusts. Leaving behind the safe world of the palace, she is now faced with the dangerous world of Merchants, Church, and the Tribe. Based on Rapunzel, no pairings yet.
1. Sires a Single Fawn

-Severed Locks-

Chapter One

-Sires a Single Fawn-

This is my disclaimer, naturally it is very boring, and since I don't think I am very witty. So, legal stuff, you know the drill. Lawyers, be disappointed as I follow the law. Story by xXWolf-SongXx, everything else is attributed to their owners, in this case, the Brothers Grimm, for their story Rapunzel.

Now we have the boring over, let's begin the story.

Pronunciations: Baroqueheat (Ba – row – ke – heat), Rahzel (Rah – zel), Alzied (Al – zee – d)

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A girl with fine features and pale skin sat in the centre of the ornate room, her long black hair glinting blue like the feathers of ravens in sunlight. Wordlessly, a slightly smaller, fair-headed girl was attending to the intricate style of hair that was expected of royalty.

The hairstyles consisted of a thin braiding wrapped around the back of her head, joining together and splitting into two long braids with fringed ends, From under this double braid tail, were long wisps of hair that flowed endlessly on, resting just before the ground, hanging above by about a half houou feather.

Additionally, there was also slits of hair that went to waist length and were curled at the tips by heat and by twisting the hair round one's finger, the only one to know this trick that worked on the deep black hair was the thin blonde haired girl.

"Lissa, how much longer till this tiresome hairstyle is finished?" Rahzel asked quietly, opening her eyes to reveal the startling colour of gold ochre.

"Not much longer my Lady" replied Lissa, pausing in her complex task to bow respectfully.

Rahzel shifted, hoping that Sir Baroqueheat would enter and announce that it was time for lessons. In the boring life that Rahzel had been brought up in, learning had always been a delight, and an escape from the dreary rules and regulations of being a princess.

Lissa skilfully twisted her wrist and finished up the hairstyle, mildly disappointed about having finished Rahzel's long, beautiful hair. The two girls sat still, the silence thick in the air. Suddenly, a knock on the door shattered the silent thoughts.

"Enter" intoned Rahzel, sounding more serious then she had intended.

A small, peculiar man scuttled through the opening of the doorway, his hair and braids swinging wildly, and his assortment of oddities that were strung all over his coat following suit in the jolting movement forward, at his entrance, Lissa had shrank back behind Rahzel.

"Lissa, you may go, otherwise you will be nuisance, hiding behind me," Rahzel announced curtly, while Lissa warily watched the man as he rummaged in his pocket and pulled out some creepy object or other. "And thank you for doing my hair," she added in a softer tone, her lips almost forming a smile.

Lissa nodded, stood up, and retreated from the room, walking backwards to keep an eye on her lady's tutor. Slightly unbalanced, she turned and closed the door after her departure of the room. Rahzel instantly stood up, and a knowing slit of a smile crept over her face.

"We will begin with sparring. I would like to see if you have been practicing since the last session." While speaking, Rahzel's tutor had straightened himself out, and by the end of his words a completely different man was standing, twirling a simple wooden sword that had a lead inlay in his hands.

Bowing respectfully, Rahzel pulled out a similar wooden sword from her robe, and then unfastened the strip of material that held the billowing lengths of material of her black and white dress robe together. In moments she had discarded this and was left standing in sleek black training clothes.

'**Boof,'**sound reverberated in the room, and the two wooden blades made contact, Rahzel anticipated her trainer's position, behind her back with the wooden sword pointing at the white nape of her neck; they had clashed together as tutor's blade was stopped by her initiative.

Unhurried, the girl twisted on the balls of her feet and faced her tutor, her mouth set in a tough smile as her wooden blade flashed towards her teacher and met air as tutor skipped back a step and avoided her lunge.

'**Bam,'**Rahzel's next lunge had made contact with teacher's blade. They were locked in a struggle of power, the girl subconsciously using her magick to reinforce her blade, and the boy using his size and strength. Friction suddenly released and the two jumped apart, lungs half empty of air.

"Y-you have," he paused, taking a deep breath and controlling his speech, "been practicing." A smile spread along his tanned face, a hand raised to swat aside dark hair that was spilling into his eyes.

"What made you think I wouldn't practice, Baroqueheat? Do you doubt me that much?" An answering smile was forming as she regulated her breathing pattern and straightened her hairstyle so that it wouldn't fall out after all of Lissa's hard work.

With a laugh, Baroqueheat advanced, using quick, light steps, his wooden sword out front and pointed towards Rahzel's flat stomach. Just as he reached where she was standing, the air shifted. Rahzel had jumped and had managed to position her self above Baroqueheat.

A flick of the wrist, and Baroqueheat's sword went flying and clattered against the wall at the other side of the room, and Rahzel carefully placed her hand and weight on Baroqueheat's shoulder to orchestrate her landing more clearly.

"Have I improved?" she asked, most of their fights ended like this, her asking this question, and him standing silently.

Baroqueheat was looking at the ground, his hair masking his clear blue eyes. "It . isn't . over . yet . " One of his hands strayed close to Rahzel's sword hand, and a small wooden dagger jutted upwards, nudging Rahzel's skin.

"Eeeh…"Rahzel exhaled, before exclaiming, "You used one of your tricks again!" She pulled her right hand away from the wooden dagger and watched as a purple-blue mark began to cloud the clear skin.

"Remember, the enemy would be fighting to win by any means possible, including tricks like this one." _Of course, the enemy isn't as skilled as her, she hasn't realised how much these fights take out of me. The only reason I win is because I find flaws in her logic._

"I will not forget that. Thank you Tutor," she bowed, and then sat down, waiting to analyse the sparring they had just done. Running a hand through his hair, Baroqueheat sat down next to her and gave a strained smile.

"You must deliberate your actions more, and plan your logic well, because the flaws of your logic are your weaknesses. That is why I win every time." The tutor finished his brief lecture with a yawn, before sprawling on the woven mattise stem carpet.

Slightly frustrated, Rahzel flung her wooden sword harder to the floor then she had intended to. Usually she managed to dodge all of Baroqueheat's attacks, but today's simple thrust of his hand had put her off. To have been tricked into thinking she had won!

She slumped on the floor, her robe hanging off her shoulders, a deject look on her face. "What next? Are you going to teach magic theory? Or are we going to discuss the history of my country?"

Baroqueheat's eyes opened, and gave a crooked smile, "Today we are going to do some real magic theory. Watch carefully, princess, and learn." As he reminded her of her royalty, she pouted, mouthing the words,** I told you not to call me that. **

A smooth hologram appeared in front of Rahzel, and she let out a small gasp of astonishment as a 3D hologram of a genderless human body appeared. Small lights appeared on the hologram, tracing lines on the body.

"See these lines? This is spirit energy; some people have large quantities of it. Normal people call this 'Magick', in reality, it was something all humans possessed but only three great clans have retained these skills since the beginning days.

These three clans have grouped together since most humans have lost these skills, and became known as the Tribe. There is a range of 'Magick' that the Tribe can use, and also a range of use that the Tribe agrees to.

Each of these clans have their only special traits and abilities, the most gifted clan being the noble Theroni, and in rare cases have the powers of the other two clans as well. The master of the Theroni Clan usually supervises the two other clan families as well as the Theroni Clan.

The minor clan is named Pasroe, and usually are sent on the lowest commissions such as retrieving money from people who owe the tribe money, the Pasroe are also widely recognised as the Tribe's slaves.

Lastly, there is the Numai. They are an essential to the Tribe because the Theroni usually inter-marries spouses with this clan to keep powers within the Tribe. They are also well known for their three unique powers that only come to those born with Numai blood."

Baroqueheat waved his hand, and the illusion changed to a picture of three silhouettes, a small one in the middle with the cursive symbol of Pasroe, the one on the left had a small block symbol that meant Numai, and the silhouette on the right was an arching sun that represented the Theroni.

An idle waver of his middle finger revealed the faces of the three men. Each one looked slightly imposing, but they all somehow possessed a frailty that blended with there stern faces. Rahzel studied their faces closely, wanting to know everything and nothing about them. Something repulsed her yet enticed her.

"Their names, going from left to right, are Terencee Numai, Romario Pasroe, and ­­­­Milone Theroni."

She nodded and peered closely at the Numai Master, he had thick dusty brown hair that curled, like a wave, onto itself and then straightened out in to funny little tufts of duck tails. Terencee had milky brown orbs fringed with small eyelashes; he had smooth slightly golden brown skin.

The next, the Pasroe Master, had white hair that hung limply and then exploded into many loose ringlets, his hair was tied back, and his forehead was smooth, but showed slight creases. His eyes were a sparkling blood red that drew you in, even though you tried to avoid his gaze.

The last man in the illusion was the Theroni Master. This man was more feminine looking then the others, he had long dark hair, the same colour as Rahzel's, and ran into one long braid with a small gold band gathering the fronds of black hair together.

His eyes were an amazing gold colour, and had two dark rings set closely together, close to the pupils. The smooth china skin was contrasting to the other darker-skinned men, and also stood out against the dark colours of his robe.

A slight intake of breath, and Rahzel watched as the picture of the three handsome men disappeared, and her reality rushed into her, waking her from her thoughts about the recent knowledge her teacher had explained to her.

"These men are part of an extremely influential power. They will most likely have all the royalty under surveillance, so be careful about who you trust, princess."

"I don't want to be called princess!" Despite her anger at this nickname, Rahzel was smiling widely, enjoying the relaxed atmosphere that followed Baroqueheat.

It was a precious moment, one of the times that the raven-haired girl wasn't guarded; instead she was allowing a proper smile. But, in this moment, the young man was uneasy; he could hear footsteps rushing towards the direction of the room.

"QUIET! Have you forgotten all I taught you? Someone is coming, fast." Baroqueheat pulled out a thick book from his traveller's bag, and opened to a page about political hostages.

Shocked, Rahzel turned towards Baroqueheat, pulling her robe on properly from it's slouched from on her body. Fixing the wad of material that kept it in proper condition; she settled herself on the floor near the low table Baroqueheat was sitting by.

He had already taken care of all evidence of the fight, and was now explaining in a calm voice about political hostages, the reasons why it would be necessary, the pros, and the cons.

Mid-sentence, there was a knock on the door. After given permission, Lissa's nervous face peeped round, her eyes narrowing upon viewing Baroqueheat, who looked like a strange small man again.

"Is there any particular reason why you are here, Lissa?" Rahzel demanded, pretending that the book was far more interesting then her servant.

Struggling against the weight of the door, Lissa pushed it back and managed to lug a heavy silver trolley into the centre of the room. The trolley had an array of silver domes, and beneath each one lay warm food.

"Thank you very much," Rahzel inclined her head in Lissa's direction, and Lissa curtsied before walking through the door way.

Steam erupted, as Baroqueheat lifted one of the domes and looked at the seasoned fish, licking his lips in anticipation of the sweet and sour spices; on another of the platters was a mound of rice noodles, with sizzling oyster sauce and beef, at this food he looked at even more greedily.

"**Zing**," the silver spoon stung Baroqueheat's hand, and he drew away from Rahzel's favourite dish, hand and pride smarting as the princess began to heap the noodles onto her plate, which was already full with fish and rampion salad.

He poked out his tongue, and she laughed, pulling the skin away from the bottom of her eyeball and adding her tongue to this gesture, which he laughed back at. There was a pause of contentment, and there was no division of the different castes they came from.

Two piled up plates of food were placed gently, for fear of toppling, on the low table; teacher and student sat, ready to begin the meal. In the centre of the table rested a simple jug containing ice cold water.

Bowed over, they murmured the words of thanks, before straightening up again, Baroqueheat in his proper form, and Rahzel without her guarded demeanour. During this respectful ritual, Baroqueheat had split himself into the second self and swapped the water jugs, letting a pellet dissolve in the replacement jug.

Forks, spoons and knives at their elbows, but these utensils were ignored as the young man poured the drinks.

The princess picked up her cup, sculling half the contents before coughing slightly. Darkness was beginning to descend on her vision, and she struggled to gain control as the drug that Baroqueheat had slipped in began to work.

Her thoughts muddle, and the will to stay awake lessened, quietly, Rahzel managed to force out two words, slurring them as the made their way through the barrier of exhaustion, "Why…are…" eyes closing as the last of the princess's strength ebbed away.

She slumped on the table, narrowly avoided her dinner, her hair spilling around her and down her back.

The regret Baroqueheat felt was loud on the unseen mountain wind.

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This is my first story on FF…

Please review and help me to become a better writer!

If you approve, then I am in you care, so please do a good job.

Pairing Polls and any other Polls will be added in later chapters once we have met everyone.

Thank you very much!

I hope we all become good friends

_May the road rise up to meet you,_

_And the sun always be on your back,_

_And until we meet again,_

_May you be blessed._

Away laughing on a camel, Tam


	2. Loud on the Unseen Mountain Wind

- Severed Locks -

- Chapter 2 -

- Loud on the Unseen Mountain Wind -

**Another boring disclaimer:** I am sure you will fall asleep whilst reading this disclaimer. I told you I have no wit, seriously, dudes. Story by xXWolf-SongXx, everything else is attributed to their owners, in this case, the Brothers Grimm, for their story Rapunzel.

**Wake up now please, because the story is going to begin!**

**Pronunciations: **Baroqueheat (Ba – row – ke – heat), Rahzel (Rah – zel), Alzied (Al – zee – d), Janske (Ju - n - s - ch – e, e is like ay in day)

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The walled citadel of Perouso lay on a low plain, with abundant crops surrounding it. In the spring, the river Rahei would flood and restore the earth with rich lint, and the festival to the goddess of harvest, would begin.

This day was one of the beginnings of the plum rain season, the first of the necessary rains to replenish the land, and the clouds cast dark shadows over the normally bright city, that had been given such a blessed plain to be situated.

Howling winds were starting up, and soon the cool water would splatter back to the earth. People hurried inside after moving their washing, or finishing their other day to day tasks, the sky was an ill-omen to them.

Inside a room, the flames of dim candles danced, their shadows illuminating the dark and bare walls. The room was bland, with wood panelling half, and white wash for the other half of the walls, it was quite a difference to the elegance and splendour of the palace.

A cold breath of wind flushed through the room and a candle flickered, casting strange shadows on a girl and her hooded companion; the silence filled the space between the two with a thick and heavy feeling.

"You may speak. I have ascertained that there is no one within earshot, including those with the hearing talent of the Tribe." The hooded being let the words slither out of his mouthlike the slippery snake soul he had inherited.

A shiver ran through Lissa's body as she stared at the odd being, who held great power within the Church, and was an ex-tribe member, she stated warily, "The princess had been disposed of. I poisoned her drink. It was just another dinner, rather a simple one because she was with her tutor, in the jug I let one of the tribe's specialty poison pellets dissolve.

You would know, Lord, they are incredibly potent. It is certain that the princess couldn't have lived through such a poison pellet at a large size, which is an overdose itself. There is no need to worry," that seemed to be the end of her sentence, but something changed the blonde's mind.

"But you should know about her recent tutor, I believe, that it was Numai (1) Baroqueheat. I didn't see his true form, but I think it was him, the man seemed to be very similar to one of Baroqueheat's favourite forms when I trained with him as a child." Darkness flitted across Lissa's face, as she remembered her training days.

The man gave a thin lipped smile, his slit of a mouth hidden by the shadows; he was amused at her fear, but as the girl's words sank in, especially the part about the man who could possibly be Baroqueheat, the smile curled into a grimace of hate.

"That no good traitor of the Numai Clan, this could mean that--" An icy hatred crept into the man's voice and then he broke off, hissing emerging from his lips, a breach of privacy found.

Across the floor, a long sinuous body of a thin snake was moving, it slipped and slithered until it reached the hooded person and began to slowly entwine its body round his arm. A series of various hisses languidly discussed the current situation, taking no notice of the girl that smelt of fear.

With a swish of his long cloak, the man moved his chair while ignoring the screeching sound of the chair legs against the floor, impatiently he walked swiftly to the door; a faint thud could be heard as the man's companion snake dropped to the floor and twisted towards Lissa, her heart gripped with ice cold fear.

A wad of paper was pushed out of its mouth; the snake's tongue flickered in disgust at the taste of paper before turning away. Nervous, she moved back, waiting for it to follow its master, before picking up the thin and aged paper and reading the instructions left behind for her. In the distance, a soft sliding sound could be heard.

If Lissa had looked out the window, she would have seen the discarded cloak fluttering in the wind.

XxxxxxX

The wheels of a wooden cart creaked, as a figure jumped off and the wood relaxed at the slightly lighter load, creaking again. The man that was dressed like a merchant with good luck to be able to feast murmured to himself, "My, my, I didn't think I had put on weight."

Within moments, the figure had disappeared and was replaced with the much slimmer figure of Baroqueheat, in his usual gear of musk blue tank top and fawn cargo pants, sighing as he looked at the sky, he hurried inside the inn.

"Welcome to Wolv's Inn" the clerk behind the desk said in a bored voice, not bothering to look up as Baroqueheat let the door clang to a shut heavily behind him. There was a slight putrid smell in the air, and the closer Baroqueheat moved to the desk, the stronger the smell became.

Breathing through his mouth, he ventured closer, "Hello, are there any vacancies? If so, could I please have a room with two separate beds?" The man looked up, eyes narrowed suspiciously before turning back to the heavy log book on the roughly made desk.

The rank smelling man flipped through the thick pages of the book, before droning out an answer, "Vacancy in room 4A, two beds." With that he settled back into his bored posture, slouching in his chair with his eyes closed.

During the short time Baroqueheat had spent inside the sky had grown even more threatening, now outside, he hurried to drive the horse and cart into the courtyard of the inn, and take the horse into the stables.

The next time the doors to the inn opened, Baroqueheat walked in with a girl of about fifteen summers cradled in his arms, and made for the stairs, walking slowly up the stairs and into a long corridor with doors leading off.

He stopped in front of one marked 4A and, pushing the door open with one foot, he crashed into the dingy room and laid his precious cargo on one of the uncomfortable looking beds, before seating himself on the one opposite.

From his vantage point, he could see the girl stirring, possibly finally waking up from the drugged sleep that had been enforced earlier that evening by the pill that Baroqueheat had dissolved in the jug of water that was to accompany the princess's light training meal.

Her limbs flayed out over the bed as the girl stretched and rolled over. Baroqueheat gave a sigh, hoping that the sleeping pill wasn't to strong for a person outside of the Tribe who hadn't been trained resistance.

After all, Baroqueheat had never actually been in circumstances before this that required the sleeping pill, the brother of the sleeping pill, the poison pill, was much more common in usage because the Tribe was usually hired out for assassin work.

"You honestly thought I was still asleep?" came a voice, startling Baroqueheat from his regrets, which he was sure were loud enough to be heard on the unseen mountain winds.

"You're awake? Truly? I'm not dreaming up company?" he asked, wondering if the boredom of waiting had finally gotten to him.

With an impatient flick of her raven-coloured hair, Rahzel sat up. "Unless I'm mistaken, I feel very much awake, no thanks to you. Traitor."

An apologetic smile flitted onto Baroqueheat's face, and he ran a hand through his hair, using the other to prop him up on the bed opposite from hers. "Business and all…Sorry about that…but you did always complain of the indifference you received from being royalty."

"Lame excuse." Stretching her sleep-stiffened body, Rahzel pulled out from underneath her embroidered robes a dagger with a ruby pommel and the royal crest, despite her hatred for royalty, the materials supplied with it were useful.

"**Tsi-iii" **The dagger whipped through the air at lightning speed, surprising Baroqueheat with its speed. His eyes narrowed, realising that she was unknowingly using the potential of a great Tribe power, the ability to distort the flow of time around them, such as slowing it down or speeding it up, usually it would synchronise around the user's heartbeat.

Inwardly cursing, Baroqueheat jumped back, pulling out his dagger in a fluid motion, it sprang easily to his hand, the silver 'wing' extensions flashing brightly in contrast with the sapphire pommel. This elegant dagger was The Dagger.

For every Tribe assassin, there is a dagger that is The Dagger to them. It is there soul mate, and one of their most important weapons. For a member of the Tribe, the skills they had been trained in, 'magick' and physical, were essential, all building up to the success of The Dagger and user, a dagger can influence the user's wishes and desires to a max.

"**Cli-zang" **The air-born dagger clashed against Baroqueheat's fan sword and clattered to the ground, but Rahzel was quick of the mark, she had pulled out a second dagger that was exactly the same as the previous one and was now standing in a fighting pose.

"I'm your _teacher!_" he shouted, hoping that she wouldn't unlock any other Tribe talents before Baroqueheat managed to get her to Percogan, a Tribe village, and harness her talent, so she wouldn't cause harm to herself or others.

Dodging, weaving, the swords spun through the air and danced intricately, as the fight raged on, no clear winner as Rahzel occasionally used her 'Magick' and Baroqueheat used all his skill to avoid and defend, but the fight did not last.

"What's the real reason behind my kidnapping?" she asked, breathing heavily as you slowly backed away and collapsed on her bed, the drug still causing her limbs to feel heavy and her movement only half as graceful as usual.

Baroqueheat avoided her gaze, knowing it was best to tell the truth, "Remember the last lesson…the book, and how it was about…" he answered reluctantly, waiting for it to click.

The girl frowned, forehead creasing in thought as she tried to sort through the hazy memories of the previous night, "you mean…I'm a political hostage!?" she demanded.

Baroqueheat gave an apologetic smile before answering, "Uh…yeah, something like that, but for good reasons! Not money! The Tribe is simply reclaiming its property."

"I'm nobody's property." She said, eyes narrowing.

"Well…" he said, drawing out the ee, and then upon seeing her annoyed face he continued, "You have the blood of the Tribe…as well as the blood of Royalty…a rather potent mix that _needs_ to be harnessed, yeah?" Running a hand through his dishevelled hair, Baroqueheat beamed apologetically, hoping for forgiveness.

In a swift movement, Baroqueheat was pressed against the wall, looking into the eyes of an angry Rahzel who had her dagger by his neck; "the Tribe…tell me more," she hissed.

XxxxxxX

Two maids stood in the corridor, carrying baskets of laundry and gossiping, one was the fair-haired Lissa, and the other was a dark-haired girl named Ariana, the two watched as a tall albino youth walked by briskly, a neutral expression his face.

"Look, its Alzeid…how does the Princess tolerate him? I can't bear to be too close to him, he makes my skin crawl!" The one named Ariana whispered staring at the boy fearfully.

"Hush, he'll look this way!" replied Lissa softly, watching the boy who was a favourite of the princess.

"He looks like a backstabber, a spy…" Ariana said half to herself, still staring at the boy, as if her eyes could bore holes in his back.

Lissa gave a small giggle, "And with those Albino looks, I'm surprised he hasn't been condemned by the Church!"

"Be quiet, Lissa, remember that Royalty still has more power then the Church…Besides, we are the Hidden religion." Startled, Ariana scolded her friend, ever fearful of the wrath of others.

"But it is certainly rising, that Alzeid better watch out! The Princess won't always protect him…" Lissa replied scornfully, not hiding her hatred of her mistress's favourite, "That's sooner then most will think."

Ariana gasped, "Lissa! Don't speak such mutinous things! The Royal family of Oakmoon is what makes Demiba Country so brilliant and peaceful! There hasn't been a war since King Tulane's reign."

"Times are changing, Ariana, and unless we adapt, we will be lost in the New World."

"Don't speak such words, Lissa!"

The impertinent blonde opened her mouth to retort, but was interrupted by the albino, who had somehow appeared in front of the two girls, "You should listen to your friend's advice, little blonde. Good Evening." And with that, he bowed and took off the corridor again, leaving the maids with their mouths open.

XxxxxxX

Scowling, Alzeid opened the door to the Princess's quarters, and said loudly, "Those damn maids were gossiping again, one of them is siding with the Church…" with sigh he sat down on one of the lounges, waiting for a reply.

There was silence. Irritated by the lack of reply, he continued, "I am very much against the little blonde named Lissa, who is in your employment. You should have her fired for her impertinence."

Still no reply. "I know she is a valuable maid of yours, who can do hairstyles, and fashion, and all that other stuff better then the other maids, but…she has to go," he relented to praising the offending maid, hoping to butter up the princess and help her come round to the idea of firing her.

It was quiet, too quiet. Warily, the white haired boy stood up, sliding a hand into his pocket and bringing out a pistol, which had been stolen from a criminal that the boy had defeated about three years ago.

"Princess?" he called out.

XxxxxxX

The King was silent, dining on the fine food that the cooks had spent hours preparing, and trying to ignore the oppressive loneliness. Three years ago, the queen had died, and his daughter now had tutoring lessons, eating dinner with her teacher while he struggled with the absence.

Sometimes, as he ate the amazing food that had been served up, he would wish for someone to burst in, stop the monotonous boredom and loneliness, a change for the better, or maybe…even for the worse, just something for a change, something to take his mind off the hurt.

Chewing slowly, he thought about how he had never wanted to be king, how he was as strong minded and wilful as his daughter is now, and he thought about loss of his queen, the one who had made the royalty not so much of a burden, and more so a gift.

"**Bang"** the heavy doors of the dining room swung upon and banged against the stone walls, they had been pushed upon by Alzied, whose breathing was ragged as he walked quickly to the table, the exertion of opening those doors – they were usually opened by a contraption, and an ordinary man could only open one door – taking their toll.

At the words of the young man, King Tulane was filled with a sense of dread.

"Your Majesty. The Princess is gone."

XxxxxxX

"I'm glad we can discuss these matters so…uh…civilly..." said Baroqueheat, his apologetic smile becoming a running theme, as he rattled the cuffs and chains which were linked to a curtain rod.

Rahzel had made herself comfy on the bed opposite her teacher, smirking at his captured state, "continue, I want to learn more about the Tribe. What skills are common among the clans?"

Baroqueheat sighed, and began "The Tribe have the powers of Theroni Hearing and acute vision, which sets in around the age of fifteen and also induces a period of silence, there is the Second Self, in which one splits themselves so to appear in two places in once, there is invisibility, moving faster then the eye can follow.

Time is…different… for the Tribe," he said, continuing on with reluctance, "it slows down or speeds up, depending on our heart beat and the urgency of a situation, after much training it can be mastered and time slowed or quickened at our will.

There is also other skills, such as the ability to rearrange features, which is a well know trait of the Numai, there is also the legendary Ghost Whisperer, but that secret was long ago lost and there hasn't been one for centuries, and there is also rumoured to be Ghost Possession, though there is little proof about that skill.

Each of the three clans have a specialty: the Theroni has extreme hearing, and acute vision; the Numai have the rearrange of features; the Pasroe have the legendary powers of the Ghost Whisperer, but it has never been known for a century now, and so they have been degraded to servants to the Theroni and the Numai who once were equal in greatness.

Each member of the Tribe is trained, not only in the skills of 'Magick' but also in the Art of Combat and Killing, and using this training they develop second lives, keeping this training for spy and assassin use and pretending to the rest of the world to be normal – merchants, actors, artists, and farmers."

"So, the Tribe is all about deceit, murder, and power," Rahzel summed up, not looking impressed at the least.

"You make it sound so much worse then it is," Baroqueheat replied, his apologetic smile featured on his face again.

"Of course, you grew up with the pain so viewed it as normal," she retorted.

"It was not a painful upbringing at all! We joked and had fun as all children did, only we kept to a strict regime of practice," he replied heatedly, before muttering, "Better structure then most kids…"

The girl shifted her glossy black hair and changed tactics, "You're fired. Have a good day" With that, Rahzel spun on her heel, and left the room.

From his position at the window, Baroqueheat yelled out "from now on it will be grass for your pillow!"

The door slammed.

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It has been bought to my attention, by my magnificent beta, that Numai is a name featured in Tamora Pierce. I didn't take the name Numai from Tamora Pierce, as I have only ever read the Lionesses Quartet, and therefore have not come across that name via Tamora (I assume that it wasn't in that series…ask Foxtriller, she is the Tamora Pierce extraordinaire, and she is also my beta). I actually made this name up in my head, but I suppose that I should credit Ms Pierce for it.

**XxxxxxX**

Thank you so much for reading!

I appreciate reviews/criticism as well, preferably criticism to help me improve

I've made a rule with myself – if I'm going to post new stories, the other stories have to have a chapter update before a new one – that is why I held this chapter back for awhile.

Have a good day!

I'm away laughing on a camel

Tam

P.S. Please review…either on this story or on Missing Pieces.


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